Static
by pourquoibella
Summary: Buzz has been on her own for over a year now, working for clients connected with the mob. Once the rogues start to grace her list, things begin on a whole new roller coaster. She's got secrets of her own, but how will that mesh with the crazies living throughout Gotham? Appearances by Crane, Bane, Riddler, and many more! Slightly AU, but mixed with comics and movies.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I own nothing but Buzz.

* * *

She stood in her doorway, staring at the package before her bare feet and gently picked it up. It was small and light in her hands and she took a moment to look around to see if anyone was still near before she took it inside. Door shut and locked, she carefully removed the object from inside and set it on her work desk. She sat down, took off her aviators, and looked closely at the miniature machine piece.

Buzz was a tech worker making her way in downtown Gotham. Her biggest connection happened to be with the Mob – mainly under Carmine Falcone. He had been sending clients her way for the last year and offering her a small discount on the back apartment of a bar he owned. She made decent money – enough to save for any side projects she wanted. She unfolded the small paper that was included in the package and read it over.

The return address was not far from where she lived – no more than a twenty minute walk. She reevaluated the small machine in her hand and believed it to be part of a cell phone. She closed her eyes and concentrated on the piece, _feeling_ it out for where the issue was. Her mechanical gift, as she often referred to it, was how she was connected with technology. Because of her past, she found herself able to get a feel for machinery when she could touch and channel it. She realized the issue easily enough and set to work fixing it.

After taking it apart, reconnecting the few dislodged wires, and reassembling it, she took another glance at the address on the paper, shoved her aviators back on her face, slipped on her shoes, and headed out. She kept her head held high and ran a hand through her straight, light-colored hair. The wind was chilly in Gotham and she did her best to walk quickly. She hugged her jacket closer to her body and stood in front of an apartment complex that looked a little worse for wear. She made her way up to find room 312 and knocked twice before it opened up.

She saw the brightly lit interior and the short fellow that had let her in. He closed the door behind her.

"Mr. Nocera?" She asked for the name on the sheet.

He nodded and held out his hand for the envelope. She set it in his palm and watched as he slowly put it into the open phone on the desk beside him. He took longer than necessary and she wasn't sure he knew exactly what he was doing, but he finally closed everything up and turned it on. Once everything seemed to be in order, he gave her a small smile.

"I'll be right back."

He left down the hallway and she took a moment to take in her surroundings and make sure she knew where she was. Never could be too careful in Gotham. She was taken from her thoughts when she heard footsteps coming her way. She turned around to see a man, much taller, and definitely different than the one who had just left. Her eye twitched under her sunglasses and she watched the man she could easily identify – anyone could as long as they had seen the news.

"Dr. Crane." She gave him a slight nod and took an unconscious step back towards the door.

He took an intentional step forward and smiled at her, holding out his hand. She shook it warily and gave him a questioning look. What would he have wanted with her **after** she fixed what he had presented her with? She didn't need to know who he was or that he resided here for any amount of time. It was a very odd situation, but she definitely felt the press to leave.

"It's nice to meet you," He seemed to be searching for a name that wasn't in his memory.

"Buzz." She supplied him.

"What a peculiar name."

"I don't believe we're here to discuss names. I'll happily take my payment for the core and be on my way, if you please."

"I was never given any information on your rates, but I'd like to discuss business if you'll stay for a few moments."

Jonathan Crane offered her a seat and she took it slowly. He noted her hesitance and also the refusal to remove her sunglasses. He wondered what she was hiding before he secured his business smile back on his face.

"How much do I owe you for the cellphone piece?"

"A C note. I charge by the hour."

She kept her tone even, but had her hand on her thigh to keep it from shaking involuntarily. She dealt with mob related men frequently, but this was a bit different. He had been the man responsible for the night that everyone went mad in the Narrows on Halloween. Having seen the look on some of the faces and the absolute terror they reflected, she wanted little to do with him. A tiger is unlikely to change his stripes.

He gave her a nod in reply and fished one from his wallet, setting it in the middle of the table. She reached out with her left arm, slowly brought it back and stuffed it into her pants' pocket.

"With that taken care of, I have another job that I'd like you to do, but I wanted to make sure you were as competent as I was told you were."

He pulled out a small box from inside his jacket and Buzz flinched as he opened the lid. She peered inside and could see another machine that looked broken and in despair.

"This is part of my mask that was damaged. I'd like you to repair it – simple as that."

She stared, apprehensively, at the box and weighed her options in her head. If she accepted and failed, or made it worse, he'd be livid and probably gas her. If she rejected him, he may do that anyway. Making her decision, she spoke.

"I'll do it. Do you have a deadline?"

He thought for a moment.

"As soon as possible is fine. Bring it back to this address when you're done and we'll secure your payment then."

He reclosed the box and pushed it further towards her. Her hand started bringing it back towards herself when he stopped it with his own. His cold fingers, a doctor's hand, chilled her body quickly. He did his best to make direct eye contact with her as he said his warning.

"It goes without saying that you be careful. I do not tolerate failure, _Buzz._"

His eyes were as icy as his fingers and she nodded her head. He held his focus a few seconds more and then removed his hand like nothing had happened. His business smile had returned. She stood and walked out the door, not even looking back. She kept an even stride down the stairs, until she got out of the building, where she broke out into a run. She wasn't sure why, but the hammering of her odd-beating heart felt appropriate once she had. The adrenaline in her body hummed through her veins as she slowed down nearer her home.

She regulated her breathing and unlocked her apartment. Once back inside, she secured the door and let out a sigh. The things she had to put up with. Any other client was dangerous, but he was a whole different bag of cats. You don't delve into crazy business and come out unscathed. She was hesitant to even take the offer, but what choice did she really have? She was backed into a corner with her situation and she didn't like it, but she had to deal with it.

She tried to look at it from a lucrative standpoint. The technology looked intricate enough that it may take her a while – which did mean more money in the end. She could definitely use it to add to her savings. She was so close to her goal, she could almost taste it. She removed her sunglasses and rubbed her right eye and gently did the same to her left. She sighed and sat back at her desk, touching the area around her socket. It had been more tender these last few days and she knew that something had to be done.

Many years ago, damage to her eye made it necessary to surgically fix it so she could keep her sight. The temporary fix was starting to deteriorate and she'd saved up just enough money to get the last piece to her replacement. Rubbing her temples, she eyed the box in her hands. It was larger than the last piece, but she was ready to tear into it. She picked up the gadget and started feeling it out. Her body hummed in tune with it and she could tell where it needed to be tended to. The issue was how delicate the pieces were and how intense of a process it would be to actually take it apart. She set to work and laid out all the different portions on a small cloth. Her fingers began to ache after the first hour and she took a longer look at the piece that needed replacing.

She searched her mind for a few moments and walked over to a shelf with boxes. Pulling down one of the higher ones, she began her search for the parts she needed. She found two, but realized that she hadn't the third. She let out a frustrated sigh and took out her phone to give a friend a call.

"Hey, Mack, it's Buzz."

"_Hey. Long time, no talk. I got that piece in you were looking for last week. Took some string pulling, but it's in perfect condition."_

Buzz smiled.

"That's great. I'll be in to pick it up soon, but I have a favor to ask. Do you have any A2 L-cogs?"

She heard him take in a breath.

"_I haven't seen any in a while, but I'm sure I could get you one in a week."_

"If you can do it any sooner, I'd appreciate it. It's for a particularly," she searched for the right word, "intense client."

"_I don't like the sounds of that. I'll hurry that up as quick as I can for ya. Stay safe and I'll give you a call when it's in."_

"Thanks, Mack. I really owe you one."

They hung up a few seconds later and Buzz let out a sigh. She looked over to the corner of her room and looked at her other creation – her new eye and socket – for a moment. She had been working on it for the last six months and was almost done, except for the part that Mack had for her. Now she just needed a way to get it set in. She couldn't very well operate on her own eye and she really didn't have anyone she could trust to do it themselves. She walked into her room and stripped down to her undershirt and boy shorts before climbing into bed.

Maybe she could build a machine smart enough to perform the surgery on its own. Then again, she wasn't sure how long she could wait and a robot like that would take a long time. She closed her eyes and frowned in frustration. Her eye twitched in pain and she relaxed her facial muscles to alleviate it. A headache began to form and throb consistently. She cursed the interactions from earlier for setting her more on edge and then an idea hit her.

_Shit._

* * *

Hit me up with a review. I'm semi-flying by the seat of my pants on this one. ;D


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I own nothing but Buzz.

* * *

Buzz paced nervously back and forth in her small room. She had finally fixed Crane's gadget and her own eye project. Now, she was just concerned about how to approach Crane about her idea and even teetered on it being a good notion at all. To give him that much control over her body, since she'd need to be knocked out, made her stomach twist uneasily. How could she let another person do that, let alone a murderer?

The pain behind her eye intensified and she winced at it. It throbbed steadily and she growled in the back of her throat angrily. She didn't have much of a choice at this point, because it needed to be done. Perhaps the pain was clouding her judgment, but time wasn't on her side. She did her best to calm her body down before leaving with both Crane's fixed piece and her advanced eye securely in her jacket pocket.

* * *

Buzz stared up at the apartment complex, her knees feeling slightly weak and her head starting to throb again in heavy drum beats. She trudged her way back up the steps and knocked on 312. She waited and was met by the same short man. He let her inside and left down the hallway once again. She sat down at the table they had been at last time and set his mask piece out. She placed her box with her mechanical eye in front of herself and waited, knee bouncing slightly.

Crane walked down the hallway silently and watched Buzz as she sat at his table. He mentally noted her posture and the tick she exhibited. He also saw the same wide sunglasses sitting on her face. This time he was going to find out why.

"I assume everything went as expected."

He looked at her face and could see a slight red hue along the left side. Her voice held a different quality this time; it was no longer hesitant, but more monotone – maybe slightly strained even. He picked up the box and looked at the fixed piece.

"Better, actually. The wait was necessary for a certain part to come in, but it wasn't too hard of a fix."

"How much do I owe you?"

"That's actually what I'd like to talk to you about."

Jonathan took that moment to notice the box that was set in front of her on the table. It was bigger than the one he had given her and she kept her hand on it protectively. It was obviously something that meant quite a bit to her, but he wasn't sure why she had brought it here. He didn't like not knowing either.

"I'd like to propose a trade. Instead of money, I'd like to ask a favor for the work I've done. If you find the task I'm going to describe to be worth more than my repair, then I'll offer you more work in return. I can better your toxin dispensers or something to that extent. I'd be," she paused and swallowed, "in your debt."

Crane eyed her and noticed that her nose was pointed more at the desk than him. He could tell that what she was going to ask him was hard for her; he didn't need to be a psychologist to see it.

"Continue."

She swallowed again, but her throat felt dry from nerves.

"I need a particular surgery done and I've found myself with time restraints. Not that I intend to insult you as not being my first choice, but you can understand where I'm coming from since we only just met each other."

She tentatively touched the edge of her sunglasses and reluctantly pulled them off. She met his eyes with her own icy ones as she continued.

"I'd like you to replace my eye with the mechanical one I've created."

She pushed the box forward, but Crane couldn't move his gaze from her face. A wire, black in color, wove in an out of her skin beneath her left eye where the flesh was plump from an infection. He could see where the red hue on her cheek had spread from and realized she needed immediate attention. Blood had dispersed from the capillaries in the corner of her eye and stained nearly half of it neon red. So, this was why she had been wearing those glasses.

He picked up the box and opened it. Inside he found two distinct parts. One looked like it would fit in the hollow of her socket and the second was an eye made to rest inside it. It was perfectly sized to a normal eye and with the shiny and obviously expensive outer lens cover, would blend in with her features well. He thought on the matter for a second longer and made his decision.

"I'll do this for you, but you will be in my debt until I see fit. You're obviously in a bind, as you said, and need help. I don't see why we both can't benefit from this deal equally."

A small smile formed on her lips, but disappeared when pain spread from the movement.

"We have a deal, Dr. Crane."

She held her hand out and he let his slip into hers for a shake. Chills ran down her spine from the coldness – no different than last time. He held it for just a beat longer than she deemed necessary and she did her best to maintain her composure.

They spoke about the technicalities of the surgery and agreed that tomorrow would work. They had even decided that the best place to do it would be her kitchen. It was large enough to work in and cleaner than any other room. She did not like the idea of having him in her home, but really had little choice and felt lucky that he had agreed to do it at all. She stood from her seat and took the box from him, his fingers lingering over hers for a moment as she grabbed it. His eyes stared into hers as he asked his question.

"How did you get your eye like that in the first place?"

He moved in a way that looked like he would touch her face, raising his hand slightly. She shied away and it brought him back from his thoughts. She let a small smile spread through the right side of her face to avoid the pain.

"A girl never reveals all her secrets on the first date, doctor."

A chuckle left his lungs in a breath as she made her way down the hall, sunglasses securely back in place.

"I'll see you tomorrow at eight."

He moved his hand down and slipped it into his pocket. His fingers touched a small piece of paper and he realized she must have snuck it into there when he wasn't looking. He scolded himself for letting her do so without him noticing. He wasn't sure how to feel about this girl, but he was also up for a challenge. Just how many layers did she have before he could chip into the center of her world?

* * *

Buzz moved around in the bar until she got around to a small back entrance. She stood in front of two large men and they nodded to have her step forward for a pat down. She let them do so and was thankful they were both courteous towards her – their hands did not linger where they weren't wanted. She made her way into the room and sat down at the booth across from Carmine Falcone.

"It's nice to see ya. What can I do for you?"

"I just thought it would be polite to give you notice that I'm going to be down for a week and I won't be able to work on anything."

"Oh. Why's that?"

She took off her glasses and he let out a sound between disgust and amazement.

"That's some infection you've got there. What're your plans?"

"I've got someone coming to fix it for me tomorrow and then I should be back in business once it's all healed."

He gave her a nod as she stood up, message relayed.

"I'll make sure to send ya some flowers. Let me know if you need anything else."

She smiled as wide as she could and left. Never look a gift in the mouth. She knew that.

* * *

Thanks goes out to my one reviewer (atiketook) so far and two followers! How do you guys like it so far?


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I own nothing but Buzz.

* * *

Buzz's knee bounced with every moment longer she waited for the doctor to see her. He wasn't late, but she couldn't busy herself any longer with meaningless tasks. She'd already picked up the kitchen until it was clean enough to eat off of any surface, made sure she had extra bandages and plenty of surgical tools, set up her room for her recovery for the next week, and brushed her teeth twice. She pulled her hair back in a low pony tail at the base of her neck and sighed to try to release some of the tension.

As she finished putting on a long-sleeve shirt over her torso, there was a short knock at the door. She opened it to see Dr. Crane standing there. He was dressed in plain pants and a button down shirt. Buzz absentmindedly realized she liked the color on him – light purple. She closed the door as he walked in and guided him down the hallway.

Crane watched Buzz as she lead him into the kitchen. Her apartment wasn't large, but he was surprised to realize she didn't get very much noise from the bar she was so close to either. He turned his head as they passed two different areas, one that looked like a dark workroom with plenty of metal pieces glinting from the hallway lamp and another that was a well lit bedroom. He couldn't glance much, but the counters and floors were spotless when they stopped. He wondered how long she had spent cleaning them and was slightly refreshed by the light lemon scent that hit his nose.

She stood in front of the table and waited for what he wanted to do or how she could help him. He had agreed to bring the sedative and a few other utensils he would use. They had spent a decent amount of time yesterday talking about the actual wiring to go into the eye and how it would sit. His main concern was attaching the base to her socket since the eye itself would balance out evenly with it in place. He noticed her shake slightly and he wasn't sure if it was more nerves or the chill in her apartment. In the end, he chalked it up to nerves and he couldn't blame her. Who wants a man who isn't particularly in his right mind all the time with a sharp object in their eye?

"What can I do for you?" She asked.

He lightly touched the square kitchen table.

"Go ahead and sit down here and I'll set up what I need. I'll let you know when you can lay down."

She nodded and did as asked. He laid out a small, white piece of plastic, and set what he needed, both his own and her tools, on it. The last thing he pulled out was a small syringe and a bottle. He heard her suck in a breath.

"Just a normal sedative, right?"

"Of course."

He gave her a small smile, meant to disarm. She relaxed slightly with his reassurance and worked to calm her breathing.

"Okay, you can lay down now. I'll get this over with and you won't feel a thing except a bit of soreness when you're up."

"You'll be there when I do?"

She tried to keep the scared tone from her voice and mentally scolded herself for not succeeding. She saw Crane nod his head and keep his face neutral. She complied with his request and laid back on the hard surface. He measured out the dose and injected it into her right arm. He took note of what seemed to be light scarring there and filed it away for later use.

"Mentally count back from one hundred for me."

She nodded and started.

_One hundred._

_Ninety-nine._

_Ninety-eight._

_Ninety-seven._

_Ninety-six._

_Ninety-five._

_Ninety-five..._

_Ninety-fi..._

She faded out. Crane felt her pulse from her wrist and touched the area around her eye to see her reaction. Finding little, he set to work removing her original eye and putting in the socket piece.

* * *

Buzz's head swam with images. She felt weightless and realized she was moving quickly. It wasn't exactly running though; it felt like she was almost flying over the sidewalk beneath her. She came to a stop in front of a house with broken windows. She looked through the top one and saw a man with dark hair and Greek features. Lightning struck down around her and hit the house, causing an edge to light on fire. She made eye contact with the man inside and ran like hell in the opposite direction.

Her body started to betray her and slow down without her consent. She caved to its demands and took a moment of rest on the sidewalk. She laid back and stared up at the sky, watching the changing weather around her. The clouds cleared and the atmosphere returned to its natural cornflower blue. An ache started pounding in her head and stayed at a dull throb. She could feel the wind blowing over her body and it gave her goose bumps.

Buzz tried to sit up from her dream and realized two hands were holding her down by her shoulders. She struggled for a moment and then relented to the pressure. She looked above her and realized she could only see out of one eye. Reality came to her and she took her time to wake up from the sedative.

"How are you feeling?"

She let out a low laugh and regretted it when she felt the vibration of her own voice bounce in her head, igniting another headache.

"I'm alright."

Crane watched her closely and checked her pulse again, this time on her left wrist. He made a point to look at it closer when he felt something weird, but she pulled her arm away from him. She started to sit up on her own and he let her. However, when she got too bold and tried to walk, he put his hand on her arm to steady her. She pulled away quickly and he took no offense.

"There are more antibiotics in your room for you. Change your bandages twice a day and if you see any abnormal swelling or puss, call me. If I don't hear from you, I'll be in contact when I need you."

He gathered up his things and left. Buzz sighed as she slowly made her way to her bed. She saw a bottle on her dresser and ignored them, opting for sleep. She crawled her shaking body under the covers and didn't even think about locking the door or caring if Crane did.

* * *

Feeling a tugging on her shoulder, Buzz pulled herself from her delirious state and stared into Dr. Crane's chilling eyes. The overwhelming urge to crawl back under the covers consumed her and she fought the chill that ran up her skin from the exposure. She groaned and closed her eye.

"What are you doing here?"

He gave a sigh at her refusal to get up.

"I had realized I had some things that still belonged to you, so I turned around to bring them back. You weren't answering me and you're sweating profusely, so I checked your temperature. I want you to take some medicine."

"I don wanna." She slurred slightly.

He pulled out another syringe from his coat and took a pull from the bottle paired with it.

"Give me your arm."

"Mmm mm."

She tried crawling under the covers more.

"Now, if you go and die on me, you won't be able to hold up your end of the bargain. Give me your arm or I will take it out myself."

Frustration plain on his face, he made his move to grab her arm when she did nothing else. He was surprised when she didn't pull away again, but assumed she was drifting in and out of consciousness. He lifted up her sleeve and flipped her arm over by the wrist to have access to her veins. He paused and looked at what he couldn't earlier.

Two long, white scars ran from the middle of the base of her palm for a few inches up her pale skin. He assumed the other wrist was the same story and proceeded to do what was needed of him. The prick to her skin seemed to wake her up, so he used his spare seconds to push the plunger. Buzz groaned and moved around the bed for a few moments longer before settling back down.

Jonathan left, job now officially done, and walked back home. His mind wandered to the little enigma he left back in the small apartment. Why did she have a mechanical eye? Why did she riddle her pale skin with scars deep enough to take her life? She lived alone, so maybe it had to do with her family. There were no pictures of anyone that he could plainly see, not even in her bedroom. The typical decoration of happy smiles and bright eyes were nonexistent. Jonathan made his way up to his room and watched the hallway as he went by carefully. Once in, he disrobed to his boxers and stared out his window for a moment, moonlight falling over his tired features.

Perhaps she had daddy issues.

Or perhaps she was just crazy.

_She isn't alone, Johnny._

* * *

Thanks so much to my reviewers (atiketook & guest) and anyone in general taking the time to read this. I hope you like it so far. ;D_  
_


End file.
